Perpetrators of the Davao City
bomb attack that killed 14 people and wounded 71 others Friday night, will be
identified and made to pay for their crime, a military official said Saturday.
While the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) has reportedly claimed
responsibility for the attack, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public
affairs office chief Col. Edgard Arevalo said the "act of owning the
explosion is something we expect the ASG to claim".
"The post-blast investigation by the Philippine
National Police (PNP) is underway and it is expected to come up with
conclusive, official findings," he said.
"That notwithstanding, if this was an act perpetrated
by any group or by any individual, they will be made to answer for this
dastardly crime," Arevalo stressed.
He further said that the AFP, by virtue of the declaration
of a "state of lawlessness" in Mindanao
and the rest of the country by the Commander-in-Chief, President Rodrigo
Duterte, responds to the call and is prepared to undertake the tasks to ensure
public safety.
He said AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Ricardo Visaya has placed
the entire AFP on red alert, directing all area commanders to coordinate with
their counterparts at the PNP.
Visaya likewise ordered them to coordinate with regional
directors of the Department of Interior and Local Government to convene the
Regional Peace and Order Council to tackle the directive of the
Commander-in-Chief, Arevalo said.
He thus asked the cooperation of the public, especially in
going through checkpoints.
"We ask our people to bear with us as we dutifully but
courteously conduct our checkpoints and increase our presence in some areas.
Your soldiers are there to ensure that public will be safe and that no
criminals or terrorists lurk in our streets and perpetrate another vicious act,"
Arevalo pointed out.
"We are calling for vigilance among our people. That is
our first line of defense and the ultimate measure to attain collective
security. Finally, we urge our people to remain calm and continue with their
normal lives as we, as a people, go through this test of our resolve to fight
terrorism and criminality," the military official said.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=919857
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